BJP president JP Nadda released his party’s manifesto
for the Assembly elections in Mizoram, making a host of promises, including a
33 per cent reservation for women in government jobs and investigation into a
social welfare scheme of the MNF Government.
In the 70-page ‘Vision Document’, the BJP went big on
promises aimed at attracting the women voters, who play a significant role in
Mizoram’s society.
Speaking at the function after releasing the
manifesto, Nadda said the BJP is committed to making it the document of
reality.
“Many political parties come out with their vision
document, their mission document, their manifesto, but we find them to be a
mere piece of paper because even they are not very sure whether they are going
to pursue that vision or mission or commitment. But, when BJP brings out a ‘vision
document’, it is well-researched,” he said.
Noting the key points in the document, Nadda said that
if voted to power, the BJP will invest ₹ 1,000 crore to revamp the agricultural
infrastructure of the state.
It will also introduce 33 per cent reservation for
women in government jobs, and establish ‘Mizoram Hmeichhiate Battalion’ – the
state’s first all-women police battalion, he said.
“We would introduce the Queen Ropuiliani Women
Empowerment Scheme whereby every girl child will be offered a cumulative
financial assistance to the tune of ₹ 1.5 lakh,” he added.
It will also launch ‘Operation Drug-Free Mizoram’ to
curb drug addiction among youths of the state, if voted to power.
Nadda said the BJP will establish a special
investigation team to probe the “irregularities and corruption” in the
implementation of the Socio-Economic Development Programme, the flagship scheme
of the Zoramthanga-led Mizo National Front (MNF) government.
He said the BJP is also committed to resolving the
long-standing border dispute between Mizoram and Assam.
The BJP also promised a budget of ₹ 250 crore to
revamp the government schools, and ₹ 350 crore to build new government colleges
and revamp the existing ones.
It promised ‘Mizoram Olympic Mission’ to make it a
leading state for sportspersons. Among the initiatives will be a sports academy
and fully-funded scholarships for aspiring sportspersons in different
disciplines.
Mr Nadda also announced that the coverage under the
Ayushman Bharat scheme will be increased from ₹ 5 lakh to ₹ 10 lakhs, and the
Zoram Medical College (ZMC) will be upgraded to Regional Institute of Medical
Sciences (RIMS).
The annual financial assistance of ₹ 6,000 under the
PM-Kisan scheme for farmers would be increased to ₹ 8,000, he said.
The BJP will also allocate ₹ 3,000 crore to upgrade
and modernise all roads over the five years, if voted to power, he added.
Nadda said the BJP will revamp state tourism with a
corpus of ₹ 250 crore.
He said the Northeast region experienced a significant
change after the NDA came to power at the Centre.
Polling for the 40-member Mizoram assembly will be
held on November 7, and the counting of votes will take place on December 3.
The BJP, which contested 39 seats in the last assembly
polls in 2018, is now contesting 23 seats. It has one MLA in the current
assembly.
PTI